Night.
Southern Capital Xia Ya of the Soma Alliance, in an inconspicuous courtyard room within the city.
Bright lights shone, and an old man with a black face sat behind the desk, squinting at a map spread across the tabletop, which depicted the troop deployments along the border between the Sika Kingdom and the Soma Alliance.
Looking at it, the map was dotted with numerous red and blue circles, with both sides' strongholds interlocking like jagged teeth, the situation complex and convoluted.
One position was marked with a large black cross, and around this cross, numerous red and blue circles were gradually converging, as if the powder keg of war had already been ignited.
The old man with the black face looked for a long while, then slowly raised his head as if hearing something, his gaze shifting towards the door.
A series of "tap, tap, tap" footsteps echoed, accompanied by a creak, the door was pushed open, and a middle-aged man in a blue robe with blue eyes walked in.
